Maybe you haven’t hear of the Hi.fo and Search.hi.fo. But when you launch your internet browser such as Chrome, IE, Firefox and Edge the Hi.fo is shown. And the unwanted web-page can appear again and again, even you close it. Then most probably that your personal computer is infected with a browser hijacker.
http://search.hi.fo/?q= …
While redirecting, your internet browser’s status bar may show the following messages: ‘Waiting for Search.hi.fo’, ‘Transferring data from Search.hi.fo’, ‘Looking up Search.hi.fo’, ‘Read Search.hi.fo’, ‘Connected to Search.hi.fo’.
The Hi.fo browser hijacker can rewrite web-browser setting like homepage, newtab page and default search engine in order to open automatically the unwanted Hi.fo (search.hi.fo). You will be annoyed about it. Similar to other unwanted software, the hijacker infection can show advertisements without your’s permission, and these annoying advertisements is hard to shut down. The worst is, the Hi.fo web page can gather your’s confidential information to get profit.
Besides the fact that Hi.fo hijacker infection modifies your startpage, this annoying web-page may set yourself as your search provider. But, obviously, it does not give you a good search results, as they will consist of a huge count of ads, links to undesired and ad web pages and only the remaining part is search results for your query from the major search engines. Of course, the very fact that you encounter with the inability to properly search the Web, is an unpleasant moment. Moreover, the Hi.fo browser hijacker can be used to collect your confidential info. This user data, in the future, can be transferred third party companies. What creates the risk of theft of your personal data.
To find out how to get rid of Hi.fo search, we suggest to read the instructions added to this article below. The tutorial was prepared by experienced security professionals who discovered a solution to delete the annoying Hi.fo hijacker out of the personal computer.
Remove Hi.fo search (removal guide)
The answer is right here on this page. We have put together simplicity and efficiency. It will help you easily to clean your system of hijacker infection. Moreover, you may choose manual or automatic removal solution. If you are familiar with the computer then use manual removal, otherwise run the free antimalware tool designed specifically to delete browser hijacker like Hi.fo. Of course, you can combine both methods. Read this manual carefully, bookmark or print it, because you may need to exit your internet browser or restart your computer.
To remove Hi.fo, perform the following steps:
- Get rid of Hi.fo home page without any utilities
- Use free malware removal utilities to completely get rid of Hi.fo redirect
- Run AdBlocker to stop Hi.fo and stay safe online
- How did Hi.fo browser hijacker infection get on your personal computer
- To sum up
Get rid of Hi.fo home page without any utilities
Steps to get rid of Hi.fo browser hijacker infection without any software are presented below. Be sure to carry out the step-by-step guidance completely to fully remove this intrusive Hi.fo .
Delete Hi.fo related programs through the Control Panel of your system
Some of PUPs, ad-supported software and hijacker can be removed using the Add/Remove programs utility which is located in the Windows Control Panel. So, if you’re running any version of Windows and you have noticed an unwanted application, then first try to remove it through Add/Remove programs.
Make sure you have closed all web-browsers and other apps. Press CTRL, ALT, DEL keys together to open the Windows Task Manager.
Click on the “Processes” tab, look for something dubious that is the hijacker that responsible for web-browser redirect to the annoying Hi.fo web page then right-click it and select “End Task” or “End Process” option. In most cases, malware masks itself to avoid detection by imitating legitimate Windows processes. A process is particularly suspicious: it is taking up a lot of memory (despite the fact that you closed all of your applications), its name is not familiar to you (if you’re in doubt, you can always check the program by doing a search for its name in Google, Yahoo or Bing).
Next, uninstall any unwanted and suspicious software from your Control panel.
Windows 10, 8.1, 8
Now, click the Windows button, type “Control panel” in search and press Enter. Select “Programs and Features”, then “Uninstall a program”.
Look around the entire list of apps installed on your PC system. Most likely, one of them is the hijacker that cause Hi.fo page to appear. Select the dubious program or the program that name is not familiar to you and delete it.
Windows Vista, 7
From the “Start” menu in MS Windows, choose “Control Panel”. Under the “Programs” icon, select “Uninstall a program”.
Select the dubious or any unknown apps, then click “Uninstall/Change” button to uninstall this undesired program from your system.
Windows XP
Click the “Start” button, select “Control Panel” option. Click on “Add/Remove Programs”.
Select an unwanted application, then press “Change/Remove” button. Follow the prompts.
Get rid of Hi.fo redirect from IE
The Microsoft Internet Explorer reset is great if your internet browser is hijacked or you’ve unwanted extensions or toolbars on your internet browser, which installed by a malware.
First, run the Internet Explorer, then press ‘gear’ icon 
. It will open the Tools drop-down menu on the right part of the web-browser, then press the “Internet Options” as shown on the image below.
In the “Internet Options” screen, select the “Advanced” tab, then click the “Reset” button. The Internet Explorer will display the “Reset Internet Explorer settings” dialog box. Further, press the “Delete personal settings” check box to select it. Next, press the “Reset” button as on the image below.
When the task is complete, click “Close” button. Close the Internet Explorer and restart your PC for the changes to take effect. This step will help you to restore your browser’s newtab, home page and search provider by default to default state.
Delete Hi.fo search from Chrome
Reset Chrome settings is a simple way to remove the browser hijacker, malicious and adware extensions, as well as to recover the internet browser’s homepage, new tab and search engine by default that have been replaced by browser hijacker.
First launch the Chrome. Next, click the button in the form of three horizontal dots (
).
It will open the Google Chrome menu. Choose More Tools, then click Extensions. Carefully browse through the list of installed extensions. If the list has the add-on signed with “Installed by enterprise policy” or “Installed by your administrator”, then complete the following steps: Remove Chrome extensions installed by enterprise policy.
Open the Google Chrome menu once again. Further, press the option named “Settings”.
The web-browser will open the settings screen. Another solution to display the Google Chrome’s settings – type chrome://settings in the internet browser adress bar and press Enter
Scroll down to the bottom of the page and click the “Advanced” link. Now scroll down until the “Reset” section is visible, as on the image below and click the “Reset settings to their original defaults” button.
The Google Chrome will display the confirmation prompt as displayed in the figure below.
You need to confirm your action, click the “Reset” button. The internet browser will launch the process of cleaning. When it’s finished, the browser’s settings including start page, new tab page and search provider by default back to the values which have been when the Chrome was first installed on your personal computer.
Delete Hi.fo from Firefox by resetting web-browser settings
If the FF browser program is hijacked, then resetting its settings can help. The Reset feature is available on all modern version of Mozilla Firefox. A reset can fix many issues by restoring Firefox settings such as startpage, newtab page and search engine by default to its default state. It will save your personal information like saved passwords, bookmarks, and open tabs.
First, start the Firefox. Next, press the button in the form of three horizontal stripes (
). It will display the drop-down menu. Next, click the Help button (
).
In the Help menu click the “Troubleshooting Information”. In the upper-right corner of the “Troubleshooting Information” page press on “Refresh Firefox” button as displayed below.
Confirm your action, press the “Refresh Firefox”.
Use free malware removal utilities to completely get rid of Hi.fo redirect
In order to completely remove Hi.fo, you not only need to uninstall it from the web-browsers, but also remove all its components in your personal computer including Windows registry entries. We suggest to download and run free removal tools to automatically free your PC system of Hi.fo hijacker.
Scan and free your machine of Hi.fo with Zemana Anti Malware (ZAM)
We advise using the Zemana Anti Malware. You may download and install Zemana Free to detect and get rid of Hi.fo from your computer. When installed and updated, the malicious software remover will automatically scan and detect all threats present on the PC system.
Visit the page linked below to download the latest version of Zemana for MS Windows. Save it directly to your Windows Desktop.
164032 downloads
Author: Zemana Ltd
Category: Security tools
Update: July 16, 2019
After the download is done, close all applications and windows on your computer. Open a directory in which you saved it. Double-click on the icon that’s named Zemana.AntiMalware.Setup as displayed in the figure below.
When the setup starts, you will see the “Setup wizard” which will help you install Zemana Anti Malware (ZAM) on your computer.
Once installation is finished, you will see window like below.
Now click the “Scan” button to perform a system scan for the hijacker which cause Hi.fo site to appear. A scan can take anywhere from 10 to 30 minutes, depending on the count of files on your system and the speed of your personal computer. While the utility is checking, you can see number of objects and files has already scanned.
When Zemana completes the scan, Zemana will display a scan report. Review the results once the tool has done the system scan. If you think an entry should not be quarantined, then uncheck it. Otherwise, simply click “Next” button.
The Zemana will remove browser hijacker responsible for redirects to Hi.fo.
Remove Hi.fo homepage with Malwarebytes
Remove Hi.fo hijacker manually is difficult and often the browser hijacker infection is not completely removed. Therefore, we advise you to run the Malwarebytes Free that are completely clean your machine. Moreover, the free application will help you to delete malicious software, potentially unwanted applications, toolbars and adware that your machine can be infected too.
- Download MalwareBytes on your PC system by clicking on the link below.
Malwarebytes Anti-malware
326385 downloads
Author: Malwarebytes
Category: Security tools
Update: April 15, 2020
- At the download page, click on the Download button. Your browser will open the “Save as” dialog box. Please save it onto your Windows desktop.
- When the downloading process is finished, please close all apps and open windows on your system. Double-click on the icon that’s called mb3-setup.
- This will run the “Setup wizard” of MalwareBytes onto your computer. Follow the prompts and do not make any changes to default settings.
- When the Setup wizard has finished installing, the MalwareBytes Anti Malware will launch and show the main window.
- Further, click the “Scan Now” button to perform a system scan with this utility for the browser hijacker infection that causes web browsers to display annoying Hi.fo web-page. A scan may take anywhere from 10 to 30 minutes, depending on the count of files on your computer and the speed of your machine. While the MalwareBytes tool is scanning, you can see number of objects it has identified as being affected by malware.
- As the scanning ends, MalwareBytes will display you the results.
- Review the results once the tool has complete the system scan. If you think an entry should not be quarantined, then uncheck it. Otherwise, simply click the “Quarantine Selected” button. Once disinfection is finished, you may be prompted to reboot the PC.
- Close the Anti Malware and continue with the next step.
Video instruction, which reveals in detail the steps above.
Scan your computer and get rid of Hi.fo search with AdwCleaner
AdwCleaner is a completely free utility. You do not need expensive solutions to delete browser hijacker that causes internet browsers to display unwanted Hi.fo web page and other malicious programs. AdwCleaner will uninstall all the unwanted applications such as ad-supported software and browser hijackers at zero cost.
- Download AdwCleaner on your Windows Desktop from the following link.
AdwCleaner download
225261 downloads
Version: 8.4.1
Author: Xplode, MalwareBytes
Category: Security tools
Update: October 5, 2024
- Select the file location as Desktop, and then press Save.
- After the downloading process is finished, run the AdwCleaner, double-click the adwcleaner_xxx.exe file.
- If the “User Account Control” prompts, press Yes to continue.
- Read the “Terms of use”, and press Accept.
- In the AdwCleaner window, click the “Scan” to search for browser hijacker that cause a redirect to Hi.fo web page. This process can take some time, so please be patient. While the AdwCleaner is checking, you may see how many objects it has identified either as being malicious software.
- When the scan is finished, AdwCleaner will open you the results. Review the results once the utility has done the system scan. If you think an entry should not be quarantined, then uncheck it. Otherwise, simply click “Clean”. If the AdwCleaner will ask you to restart your computer, click “OK”.
The step by step guide shown in detail in the following video.
Run AdBlocker to stop Hi.fo and stay safe online
Enabling an ad-blocker program like AdGuard is an effective way to alleviate the risks. Additionally, ad-blocking apps will also protect you from harmful advertisements and web-sites, and, of course, block redirection chain to Hi.fo and similar web sites.
Download AdGuard program by clicking on the link below. Save it to your Desktop so that you can access the file easily.
26627 downloads
Version: 6.4
Author: © Adguard
Category: Security tools
Update: November 15, 2018
After downloading is finished, start the downloaded file. You will see the “Setup Wizard” screen as displayed on the screen below.
Follow the prompts. After the installation is finished, you will see a window as shown in the figure below.
You can press “Skip” to close the setup application and use the default settings, or click “Get Started” button to see an quick tutorial which will allow you get to know AdGuard better.
In most cases, the default settings are enough and you don’t need to change anything. Each time, when you launch your PC, AdGuard will start automatically and block pop-up ads, web-pages such Hi.fo, as well as other harmful or misleading web pages. For an overview of all the features of the application, or to change its settings you can simply double-click on the AdGuard icon, that can be found on your desktop.
How did Hi.fo browser hijacker infection get on your personal computer
The hijacker usually come bundled with free applications that downloaded from the World Wide Web. Which means that you need to be proactive and carefully read the Terms of use and the License agreement properly. For the most part, the Hi.fo hijacker infection will be clearly described, so take the time to carefully read all the information about the software that you downloaded and want to install on your system. In the Setup wizard, you should choose the Advanced, Custom or Manual install type to control what components and bundled programs to be installed, otherwise you run the risk of infecting your PC system with an infection such as the Hi.fo hijacker.
To sum up
Now your PC should be clean of the browser hijacker which designed to reroute your internet browser to the Hi.fo web site. Uninstall AdwCleaner. We suggest that you keep AdGuard (to help you stop unwanted popups and unwanted malicious pages) and Zemana Free (to periodically scan your computer for new malware, browser hijackers and adware). Make sure that you have all the Critical Updates recommended for Windows OS. Without regular updates you WILL NOT be protected when new hijackers, malicious software and adware are released.
If you are still having problems while trying to get rid of Hi.fo homepage from your web browser, then ask for help in our Spyware/Malware removal forum.
